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Punish the deed, not breed: P’kula Rottweiler, Pitbull owners
Pet owners and animal rights activists gathered outside municipal corporation and demanded that the blanket ban on the two dog breeds be rolled back.
“My name is Thor, and I am 9 years old. Please do not separate me from my family!” read one of the placards raised by a distressed pet owner, protesting against the civic body’s decision to ban “ferocious” Pitbull and Rottweiler breeds within city limits on Tuesday.
Outraged over the “vilification” of their dogs, pet owners and animal rights activists gathered outside municipal corporation and demanded that the blanket ban on the two dog breeds be rolled back. “Punish the deed, not the breed,” they said.
One of the protesters, Priya Singh, who had rescued a sickly lactating Pitbull in 2018 says, “When I met Ellie, my Pitbull, four years ago, she was in a bad state. She had been abandoned by her owner and was also suffering from a skin disease. Today, the five-year-old canine is family, and I refuse to abandon her again.”
Banning breeds, not the solution: Pet owner
Asked about the rationale behind the civic body’s move to ban certain “dangerous dog breeds,” Singh says, “First of all, certain dog breeds attacking people has not been an issue in the tricity. They are acting on reports from different parts of India. Besides, banning two breeds in the city is not a solution. Pet owners will not take the MC’s hasty decision lying down.”
Another protesting dog owner, showing a photograph of a puppy, said, “My wife gave him to me as a wedding gift. The dog is like our baby, and the authorities want us to abandon him on the street!”
The pet owners said no breed can be declared “congenitally dangerous” as dogs’ behaviour depends on their upbringing and the environment they live in.
Practical and legal conundrum: Animal rights activists
A memorandum submitted to the mayor by the Animal Welfare Association stated: “Our constitution does not permit a generalised penalisation of an entire breed based on actions/ wrongdoings of one member of the community.”
“What will happen to hundreds of pets? Where will they be kept? Is there any facility where they can be kept without violating cruelty norms?” the Panchkula-based body asked in their memorandum, adding that dog pounds had been disallowed by the Supreme Court.
Terming the decision “unconstitutional”, the protesters said the ban will lead to several practical and legal issues. “This decision cannot be practically imposed as officials cannot check each and every household. Rather, the MC could ban breeding and sale of these two breeds. After a declared date, any sale of the breeds could be penalised,” members of the Animal Welfare Association said.
Find a humane solution: Activists
“The civic body could ask pet owners to register pet Pitbulls and Rottweilers by a certain date so that a record could be maintained. Cases of pregnant Rottweilers and Pitbulls and their pups must also be considered,” they said, urging the MC to adopt a humane approach.
After images of injured and abandoned Rottweilers and Pitbulls surfaced on social media, MC councillor Akshaydeep Chaudhary, shared one of the photographs, saying, “People have started disowning them (the banned dog breeds) out of fear. The picture is disheartening. We request you to keep your pets safe, and we shall get this order reversed.”
Mayor Kulbhushan Goyal said, “These two ferocious breeds constitute only 2% of the registered pet dogs. Out of the 410 dogs registered in the city, only eight are Pitbulls. Whatever decision will be taken in the matter in future will be as per the law.”
Mayor Kulbhushan Goyal’s quote with the story on Pitbull and Rottweiler
“Whatever further decision will be taken, it will be according to the law. These two ferocious breeds are only 2% of the registered pet dogs. Out of 410, we have only 8 pitbulls registered.”
